Ex-NFL star convicted of raping homeless woman

A former NFL star has been convicted of raping a 58-year-old homeless woman.

Kellen Winslow Jr, who played for Cleveland, Tampa Bay, New England and the New York Jets during his career, was found guilty of the charge following a trial in San Diego.

The 35-year-old, the son of Hall of Famer Kellen Winslow Sr, was also convicted of indecent exposure and lewd conduct involving two other women.

Image: Winslow Jr did not testify in court during his trial. Pic: KGTV via AP

He was cleared of one count of performing a lewd act, and the jury is still deliberating on eight other charges, including two counts of rape involving a 54-year-old hitchhiker and an unconscious teenage girl in 2003.

Winslow Jr faces up to life in prison if convicted of all counts.

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Prosecutors said he felt empowered by his fame to abuse the most vulnerable, describing him as a "wolf in sheep's clothing".

Winslow Jr was found guilty of raping the homeless woman last year in the picturesque beach community of Encinitas, north of San Diego.

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She told the court Winslow Jr befriended her and attacked her next to his vehicle after inviting her for a coffee in May 2018.

The former American football star, who played as a tight end, was convicted of exposing himself to a 57-year-old woman while she tended to her garden during the same month.

He also found guilty of touching himself in front of a 77-year-old woman at gym while he was out on bail in February, but cleared of committing a lewd act in a hot tub in front of the same woman on a different occasion.

Image: Winslow Jr pictured playing for the New England Patriots in 2012

The 54-year-old hitchhiker alleges Winslow Jr drove her to a shopping centre parking lot in Encinitas and raped her in his Hummer in March 2018.